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Bike Boy
Location: Columbus, Ohio Date: April 16, 1990 Story On the evening of April 16, 1990, fifteen-year-old Brian Powell was watching the end of a local Boy Scout meeting where his father, Preston, served as one of the Scout masters. "We were watching the close of the meeting and I said, 'Brian, I think I'll head on home. Are you going to be okay?' and he said, 'Sure, Dad, I'll see you later' and that was the last moment I had with him," said Preston. Brian had ridden his new bike to the meeting and wanted to ride it home. He headed out in the street at around dusk. Brian was not prepared for night riding as there was no reflector behind the seat and he was not wearing a helmet. His friend, Pat Ridgeway, was also riding his bike home and met up with him. "We didn't recognize each other at first and then we talked for a while and then I headed home and said, 'I'll see you later,'" said Pat. He kept going east crossing the street, but Brian turned north and did not see a car coming his way. All of the sudden, his bike crashed into the car and he fell on top of it, crushing it and onto the street. Pat didn't think it was real at first, but then he moved his bike over, saw Brian lying in a pool of blood, and knew he was in trouble. The driver of the car, Fonda Rush, rushed out with her daughter, Johnna, to see what they could do to help. An eyewitness to the accident called 911. Police and rescue units were immediately dispatched to the scene. Patrolman Fred Howard was just two miles away from it. He got out of his cruiser and could see that Brian's injuries were very severe and he was having difficulty breathing. Howard did not want to risk injuring Brian further by pulling him out so he waited for the ambulance to arrive. Paramedic Kevin Griffin then took over Brian's care. "It was apparent to me that he had an obstructed airway very unstable of facial bones. It appeared to me that his face smashed right into the windshield," said Griffin. His airway was blocked by his crushed face and he was slowly suffocating. Griffin was then forced to take immediate action to try and save Brian's life and opened his airway within 30 seconds. Brian was immediately rushed to the hospital. An officer was sent to his house to tell Preston and his wife, Vicki, what had happened. "I saw a policeman standing there and as a dad, I had that sense that something was terribly wrong. I looked at the policeman and he said, 'Your son has been in a bike accident.' I knew then that my life would never be the same," said Preston. Brian's injuries were so serious that he was airlifted to the trauma center at the Children's Hospital in Columbus led by Dr. Robert Ump. "We started assessing him and within a matter of minutes he suffered a cardiac arrest," said Dr. Ump. He was taken to the ICU and there was little his parents could do but wait. "That night we were informed that we almost lost our son twice and the first time I saw him it was a pretty big shock," said Vicki. Brian had suffered multiple fractures of his face, skull, arm, and collarbone. His recovery was slow and painful, but his prognosis looked good. "My body just didn't want to die down and just wanted to keep working," said Brian. Recently, Preston and Vicki threw a surprise party for Griffin and thanked him for saving Brian's life. "I just gave him a gigantic hug and thanked him for saving Brian's life," said Vicki. After two months, Brian was released from the hospital and since his accident, he has made remarkable progress. The accident left him partially blind in his right eye and he has learned to always wear a helmet no matter what when riding a bike. Category:1990 Category:Ohio Category:Bicycle Accidents